Kevin Reiterer targets second world crown for Victory Team

Victory Team’s World Champion Kevin Reiterer is eagerly looking to carry forward his winning momentum and a successful defence of his crown when the 2019 UIM-ABP Aquabike season opens in Portugal in the first week of May.

Making his debut for Victory Team, Reiterer won his second world title at the season finale in Sharjah last December. The Austrian ended the last race of 2018 with a total of 170 points, well clear of French challenger Raphael Maurin who ended in second with 137 points.

Displaying every sign of his passion, the 26-year-old Austrian, who also carries a World Number One Ranking, did not take off his foot from the pedal as he returned to the Middle East at the beginning of the year to participate in the 2019 UAE Aquabike Championships held during the traditional winter break.

That, and his constant urge to excel at everything he does, has given Reiterer the right sort of momentum going into the opening race on the UIM-ABP Aquabike European Continental Championship to be held in Penafiel, Portugal, from May 3-5.

“With Chris Wilkinson at the fore, we’ve enjoyed a rather busy off-season where we have done a lot of testing on the jet-ski. And then we were fortunate to have the UAE Aquabike Championship that I won with one race to spare,” Reiterer related as he prepared for a fresh start to the season.

“The question now is to keep this momentum going right from the start of the season. I am participating in the opening round of the European Championship so that I am at my sharpest best when the World Championship gets underway. The travel part won’t be too rigorous as both races are in Portugal and that will suit me well,” he added.

The 2019 season will consist of five rounds beginning with the opener in Portimao, Portugal from May 10 to 12. The second round will be held in Olbia, Italy on June 1 and 2 followed by the third round at a yet to be disclosed venue in China from October 18 to 20. The riders will then move on to Amaravati in India for the penultimate round from November 12-14 and then the season finale in Sharjah from December 17 to 20.

Reiterer picked up his world champion’s trophy from UIM President Dr Raffaele Chuilli at the awards gala held in Monaco in March. However, a few days later, the Austrian made the trip back to Dubai to carry on some more testing of his jet-ski before shipping it off to Europe. “All is well with us and we are quite excited with the way our pre-season preparations have gone,” Reiterer admitted.

“We need to now put into practice and ensure that all our hard work pays off with yet another world title for Victory Team. My hopes for 2019 are simple – I want to defend my world title and keep it for one more year with Victory Team. The preparations have gone really well and I don’t see any reason why we can’t win again. We are all ready to go,” he smiled.